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This is Your Brain On ...

By sb admin on October 2, 2007.

Several recent news stories highlight things you should know if you want to keep your brain healthy.

Killer Amoebas: The Associated Press warns, "Killer amoebas living in lakes can enter the body through the nose and attack the brain, where they feed until you die."

Sports: The New York Times reports that among high school athletes, girls are more susceptible to concussions than boys playing the same sports. Football, which attracts more male players, still has the highest rate of concussions in high school sports, though.

Conscientiousness: Reuters explains the findings of study published in Archives of General Psychiatry: "People who lead a good clean life -- those who are conscientious, self-disciplined and scrupulous -- appear to be less likely to develop Alzheimer's disease."

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Lesson 1: Be pure, be sedentary, and for God's sake, stay out of LAKES WITH KILLER AMOEBAS!

Lesson2: Don't play rough or cheat at water polo in LAKES WITH KILLER AMOEBAS!

This is great. I spend sleepless nights worrying about my daughter at school in Florida playing soccer and getting eaten by alligators, and now I have to worry about LAKES WITH KILLER AMOEBAS!

At least she's conscientious, self-disciplined, scrupulous and leads a good clean life -- or so she tells me. But what good is that if you go swimming in LAKES WITH KILLER AMOEBAS!

I'm buying her a soccer helmet and nose plugs.

LAKES WITH KILLER AMOEBAS?!

By Jordan Barab (not verified) on 02 Oct 2007 #permalink

Actually, if you're playing water polo in LAKES WITH KILLER AMOEBAS, you can go ahead and cheat. The brain-devouring organisms will get you before you have a chance to develop Alzheimer's.

Yep. You know, for some reason, in Junior High School biology we saw a film that had (I guess as a tangent) amoebas from lakes fatally killing someone dead through brain-eatin'. Damn. I was very concerned with that for a few years. Thanks for reminding me. (I'm ordering nose clips right now....)